Room for improvement
by A Man of Taste
Summary: What happens when a former street thug from the inner city wants to change himself for the better?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the brands, titles or lyrics referenced.

Lying awake at night had been a common occurrence, the noises of the inner city were ever-present as their variety never seemed limited to just the passing vehicles or people talking in walks by the house. Perhaps someone next door blaring whatever music they felt like or the usual spousal spat. Sometimes the occasional scream or other disconcerting noise of someone suffering would stand out amongst the rest. But that was just the white noise of the area where JC lived.

Rolling onto his right side, the moonlight bled in between the bent tin shades just ever so slightly illuminating to room where the other small lights did not. The alarm clock, for example always had that slightly menacing bright red tone while displaying the current time. Looking to its numbers, the face read '1:37 AM'. The young man audibly groaned as he prayed and begged his body to allow at least a hint of sleep before the morning sun came to ruin the cool night sky. Reversing his actions and rolling onto his back, JC stared straight up at the cracked and chipping paint of his bland off-white ceiling. He had always lamented where he lived and the state of his house but could never quite be bothered to change it for the reason of never seeming to have just enough money to get done what need be.

He sat up in the bed with a grumpy huff. The bedsheets were a dark blue and felt like dollar store silk but for what he needed, they got the job done. Looking around his room, the various things he'd had laying around always stood out to him as a mess. He was of course quite proud of his mess as he'd come this far practically alone but alas, it was still a mess. Throwing the sheets off and shakily standing from the bed frameless mattress, JC gradually made his way over to where he tossed his sleeping pants and tiredly hoisted them to his waist, letting the elastic snap at his sides with a thump. Picking up a tired stride through the dark room, his hand traced over the punching bag he kept hanging in the corner. His personal stress reliever that never complained, no matter how hard he hit it or for how long. Catching his toe on a dumbbell he lazily left by the bag rack, he stumbled forward with a hand on his foot.

"Agh, bitch!" He yelled. Hitting furniture or wood was one thing as they had at least some give, but try a solid lead weight that isn't going anywhere at near full walking force.

Stumbling with hand comforting toes, he stood back on two feet before moving the weight further under the bag with another of his trademark grumpy huffs. Heading down the hallway and into the kitchen where the blinds were left open from times past, the moon greeted him much more as the ghostly light trailed in, choked only by the smaller size of the windows.

Bottles of all kinds sat under a shoddy cabinet next to the sink. The pale light was able to illuminate such names as ' _Stolichnaya_ ' and ' _Jim_ _Beam_ '. But for tonight, the water from the sink would sate him as JC filled a cup and brought it to his lips, purging the dryness from his palette. The rest of the room aside from the small kitchen was some imitation of a living room filled with only the essentials.

A rough old couch that had obviously seen better days as the cushions were much more flat than they used to be with scattered rips and tears here and there sat right before a decently sized flat screen TV on a small stand. Connected and glowing with a red light was his second main source of entertainment. An old PlayStation 2 lie flat inside the stand shelving with a meager stack of games like ' _BLACK'_ and ' _Yakuza'_. His personal favorite was an oldie titled ' _War of the Monsters_ '. But on the left wall stood what kept him sane in his free time at home. A turntable stood proud upon a taller cabinet and its plastic body gleamed with the urge to sing whatever songs were engraved into the vinyls that it was given.

Kneeling down by the doors of the cabinet, JC fished out his favorite. Even in the dark of night, he always knew where his personal favorite lie in wait for its next spin. The moonlight painted itself across the cardstock cover and lit up only a portion of its title.

' _...ate Machi...'_

Slipping the disc out of the casing and propping the cover of the player open, he sat the vinyl on the platter and set the needle. JC sat himself on his couch with his legs across the cushions and stared as the pops and crackles in the speakers eventually gave way to some kind of tribal stick drumming and a woodpecker hammering away at a tree trunk along with what sounded like some children yelling to a real drum line. Then the heavy synth opening followed suit, establishing itself with force and vigor. The opening line crept in along with the beats.

" _God money, I'll do anything for you..."_

" _God money, JUST tell me what you want me to..."_

What may have sounded like harsh tones and screaming vocals to most were pretty soothing to the young man that was currently being carried off.

 _Gunshots_

 _Blood_

 _Screaming_

 _Fear_

 _Blood_

 _BLOOD_

 _ **BLOODBLOODBLOODBLOODBLO**_ _-_

Nightmares were a common fare for the young man but his savior from tonight's would be the rumbling storm that circled the area. JC snapped awake as a crack of thunder nearly shook the house to pieces, the record player was long silent as the needle had reset itself into the crane cradle and awaited the disk flip to continue the album. Groggily righting himself on the couch, he cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders to begin the wake up process. It was no surprise that his balance was not at peak when he stood a tad too fast and stumbled a bit to his room where the new school uniform lay in its bag along side a couple others. Looking toward his alarm clock, the display read '6:14 AM'.

"Ah shit..." he muttered while hastily grabbing a bagged uniform and heading to the bathroom. The shower head rained cold water on the sleepy young man as he shivered during his scrubdown. Finishing up and rinsing off, JC stepped out and quickly toweled himself off and started brushing his teeth. His eyes wandered from their reflection down to his quite sturdily built body, those morning workouts really did pay off.

JC was quite a big boy despite being an average 18 year old. Living out in where he did, you had to be. Any sign of weakness or inability to defend yourself was a flag for a jumping. Standing at six foot three and weighing in at a hundred and eighty six pounds, he was more than capable of handling himself, especially after all the fights he'd get into when he was younger.

Eventually his eyes trailed the details of his body and that's where his problems began. Everyone had their scars and marks, it was a given that people get hurt along the way but his marks were self made for his vanity alone. The tattoos that ran along his chest would make most police put and hand on their weapon immediately once they'd dug into the details. Every time he saw his shameful markings, it made his blood boil to remember his disgraceful past. JC scowled at his brands and stared downward into the sink for a bit before looking back up at the last place he could... himself.

His fair skinned features were masculine and pronounced but not without imperfection as a large bruise dotted the left side of his jawline and another, smaller mark lie under his left cheekbone. His eyes were a faded blue, almost comparable to slate at this point and had an air of being menacing or piercing if focused. His snow white hair fell past his shoulders with a center part.

Ripping open the plastic over the uniform, JC began dressing himself but happened to pause halfway through shaking out the new pants. He couldn't help but feel like he was missing something...

Rolling his is eyes in his own disappointment, JC muttered "Boxers, jackass..." and fetched a pair from the dresser by his bed.

Dressing up was quick aside from the only roadblock being his tie. At first struggling with it until he gave up and watched a tutorial on his phone. Tying his hair back into a tight, high ponytail a few loose locks fell by his temples and around his eyes. Throwing on his leather jacket, he gathered the days' supplies and headed off to his new school and hopefully, new life.

The train ride over was quick and painless as the city skyline passed the windows, painting the picture of the ideal city of today. Billboards dotted the buildings with advertisements of all kinds, promising the new and trendy products that would complete your life. But that wasn't important, what was is the new school he'd transferred to near the city limits. Classes started at 7 and he wasn't sure when he'd left but he knew it was most likely to late to be on time. Hopping off at the station, JC picked up a hurried stride as surprisingly, other students were still walking down the road and to the building. Patting himself down, he rolled his eyes yet again as the realization of forgetting the most important tool of his life lay at home on the kitchen counter... his phone.

"Fuckin' beautiful start already. Bet it's gonna rain too..." Surely enough, he was right. Almost as if God was taking time out of his day simply to cause him undue grief.

The rain rolled off his jacket as he ran a hand over his wet face. The grumpy look on his face would catch some looks from the other students going to their classes but that wouldn't matter much to him so long as he could be left to his own devices. His thoughts wandered from imaginations of his different classes and what they'd be like as most students do. His baseline hope was that he could finish this year without a hitch and be done with it entirely so he may continue his life and attempt to improve himself. Fairly average thoughts that everyone has at some point or another but soon those thoughts were cut off by a heavy thump against his left side.

"Gaah!" A small, feminine voice cried out as the sound of someone hitting wet pavement drew his attention. JC turned his cranky gaze toward the source and found what was a small girl with coral pink hair sitting at his feet and rubbing her head.

"Uwaah... I-I'm sor-" the girl's apology was choked up before she could finish as she looked up at the young man towering over her. She felt as though his eyes were boring away at her own while the contact remained.

"I-I'M SO SORRY PLEASEFORGIVEME!" Scrambling to get away, she launched herself down the sidewalk, covering her head from the rain. It was of note that she was one of the only students not carrying their umbrella.

'Fuck is her problem? Klutz...' Just before stepping away, JC saw what appeared to be a small purse laying in a puddle near where the girl had fallen. His conscience surfaced and urged him to at least make an attempt to be nicer, as it was important to make good first impressions.

'Seems like I already made quite the impression if I scared her off like that... Fuck it, fine. Karma or whatever.' Snatching it the purse from the puddle, he continued the walk to his fresh start.

The school lobby was filled with students getting themselves together for morning classes. Girls and boys talking and gossiping about anything and everything. Finding his locker and stuffing his jacket in, JC pulled up he sleeves of his uniform and peeked out over the crowd. Being tall had its advantages as amongst the various colors, he spied that same hue of pink bouncing up and down through the depths of the morning mob. Purse in hand, he made his way, gently moving people aside until he hit a clearing in the hallway. The girl now fully in view with books in hand made her way down the hall past a group of three boys with their uniforms in a similarly disheveled fashion to his own with loose ties, untucked shirts and rolled sleeves. Obnoxious hallway groups were quite common but these were a step above.

Typical delinquents that would harass girls, pick on others and be general dunces as they were known to be attended even this school. Truly nowhere was safe. Hoping and praying that they'd leave him alone, JC followed the girl with a brisk pace as his quest was nearing completion.

"Yo, nice purse man. Your boyfriend buy it for you?"

Stopping mid step, he turned slightly but shook his head and continued walking. 'God give me strength...' He thought. First day here and he can't have a reputation as a thug.

"That's what I thought. Be a good boy toy now!" The laughter echoed in his ears. Stares were being drawn from the lobby as some students couldn't help but notice the roaring laughter and the now angered student that none of them had seen before.

Turning straight around and walking up the the posse, JC raised his voice. "Is there a fuckin' issue?"

The laugh track may as well have had a record scratch with how suddenly it was cut off. Seems like confrontation was not very common in a school on the good side of town. More and more gazes from the peanut gallery started to make JC feel self-conscious but the voice in his head telling him to start wailing on those idiots was overshadowing anything else. One of them seemed brave enough to rise to the challenge and stepped up.

"Yo man, just calm your ass down. Take a fucking joke." Suddenly finding a hand gripping his shirt, the delinquent was near effortlessly thrown aside. God must have selective hearing as no strength of will was given today. Gasps escaped some girls as the boy was cast aside like trash, straight into the opposite wall. JC leaned down a bit to get right in the face of one that was leaning on the wall and now seemed to be quite insistent on clinging to it.

"You wanna talk it up again like that? Come find me outside. We'll fuckin' settle it there."

One final look toward the morning mob reflected their own stares away. Seems as though they had no interest in earning the ire of the new guy. Turning on a heel and leaving the scene, his cheeks flushed with the realization that he was falling back into old habits.

'Fucking wonderful. Now everyone KNOWS I'm an asshole...'

The first bell rang and students flocked to their classes as did JC. He may not have known exactly where he was going but room numbers didn't lie. Counting up slowly he eventually found his homeroom and entered. Most conversations went silent as he'd entered. Recognizing a few faces from the earlier crowd, he'd looked away clearly embarrassed. One face however stuck out to him, as she sat by the window. Her pen traced the surface of the paper while her eyes gave the impression of deep thought. That hue of pink was the same he'd been looking for before the unfortunate encounter. Finding an open desk and planting himself down, class began shortly.

The door opened once more, a teacher stepped in, greeted the class and introduced themselves. They received a greeting from the class in kind.

"Alright everyone, it seems we have a few familiar faces but this year, a new student will be joining us." JC could feel their eyes on him from all around as he tried to make his presence as small as possible. "Why don't you come up and introduce yourself to the class?"

'Please, no.' Rising against his embarrassment for the hallway display, JC stepped up to the front of the class and cleared his throat.

"Uh, hello... I just moved to the city a few weeks ago. You can call me JC." He'd desperately hoped that would be enough to satisfy them as their curious gazes analyzed any outstanding parts of him.

'Please just let me sit down.' He thought.

"We look forward to working with you. Now since you're new here we typically appoint someone to help you and answer any questions you may have. Any volunteers?" He was quite surprised to find that a few girls had actually raised their hands, one such being the girl from this morning even if her face betrayed her apprehensiveness.

"Erm... Sayori, why don't you help JC here? Go on, take a seat right by her." The teacher ushered him forward and he gladly went as it was a means to get out of the spotlight. Taking his belongings from the original desk he'd chosen at random, JC sat next to the girl now known as Sayori and attempted speech.

"Ah... Hi there."

"H-Hello...I-I uh..." her stammering would come off as annoying to most but it calmed him knowing she'd had as much trouble as he was trying to form sentences.

"Listen, I'm sorry about this morning. You know...running into you..." she said as she had her hands together between her thighs, shifting about ever so slightly.

"Don't worry about it. It looked like I scared you more than anything." He smirked at this, thinking back to the events.

"Well you're really big and tall! I thought you were gonna step on me!" He chuckled at her outrageous statement.

"I'm serious! You looked so angry that I'd bumped into you so I ran away! I hope you're not still mad..." her head hung a little as he cheeks puffed out. JC just shook his head, keeping that smirk.

"I wasn't angry at you, it was just the walking in the rain and forgetting my phone that made me a little grumpy." Something was tugging at him, like how one would think they've left the sink or light on in their home. "Oh, almost forgot."

Taking the small purse out from the pile of belongings, JC had finally finished his good deed for the day even if it was overshadowed by the negative reputation he'd just gained.

"You dropped this outside before you ran off..."

"MY PURSE! I've been looking all over for this, thank you thank you thank you so much! I was gonna have a panic attack if I lost all my snack money~!" Sayori beamed at the sight of the bag returned. She would have thrown her arms around him, dragging JC into a hug had she not been in class.

"Ehehe, I bet under that big, tough shell you're just a big softie." Sayori seemed to be enjoying herself as she continued giggling. JC however just shrugged at her. "Hey, JC... You haven't joined any clubs yet, have you?" Her eyes almost looked pleading as they met his.

"I've been here for a grand total of..." He looked to the wall clock and then right back. "...half an hour. No, I have not joined any clubs."

"Perfect!" Sayori was bouncing in her seat with her balled hands held up by her chest. "I have the perfect one for you!"

"Not interested." His immediate dismissal nearly broke her heart.

"W-What...? But you don't even know what I was about to say!" Tears may come but he knew being direct was the best way of getting his message across.

"Look, I'm just here to graduate and move on. I don't want to be in this building longer than I have to." Callous as he may sound, he figured it best to stay away from whatever he could and just power through this final year.

"Will you at least hear me out? I promise there will be cupcakes!" Sayori was near desperation now, almost as if she needed at least one person to follow her to this club. Reluctant but making his efforts to be better, he agreed.

"Sweets aren't my thing but, I guess I can look around. Where is it?"

"It starts after classes, I'll come find you when it's time to start!" The smile on her face radiated joy as her burdens and anxieties seemed to have been lifted. JC could easily see the ulterior motives but being that this is a school club, he figured they were most likely harmless.

The final bell tolled, signaling the end. Standing from his desk and shoving his books and notes away into his bag, JC stepped out into the hallway and began making his way out. He felt as though he had something else he had yet to do here as a lost memory tugged at him.

"Oh... right." He said aloud. Stopping and looking around, Sayori could be seen in the distance,

Scrambling around looking for him with a worried expression. When she finally made eye contact, that wonderful smile returned in force as she bounded down the corridor.

"I almost thought I wasn't going to find you! But I remembered that all I have to do is look up!" She giggled at her own playful poking. Taking his arm and guiding him through the mobs, eventually the two found their way to a quiet little door with muffled voices addressing each other behind it. Throwing open the door with the enthusiasm she was known for, Sayori proudly addressed the club.

"Hello, everyone! I brought our new member~!" The attention of three girls inside was fully directed on the "new member". JC could feel his face flush at the familiar feel of close analysis.

"Ugh, you brought a boy? Way to kill the atmosphere!" Said the short statured girl with bright pink hair. His attention drew straight to her as she glared and crossed her arms with quite the puffy expression.

"Look, I'm only here because I was asked to be." He retorted. JC could already tell they weren't likely to get along.

"W-What? But I thought you were interested!" Sayori clung to his arm with those same puppy eyes he saw when he immediately denied her request.

"I said I'd come and look around. Never said I'd join."

"Ahem..." One of the girls stepped forward and put on a pleasant smile as she put her hands behind her back. "Oh, don't mind our little friend here..."

"Little!" The pink one balled her fists.

"...she's just a tad shy and abrasive around new people. Now, since you're here to look around why don't you sit and relax? Allow me to show you what we're all about here." Her words were as enticing as her eyes. Truly that shade of green could only be found in the most flawless of emeralds, but something told him there was a deeply hidden danger.

"Yeah! Come on and park it, We've go tons of fun things to do here... like uh... read! Or make poems!" It's like Sayori was trying to fish something out of the aether that would pique his interest. "Yuri here makes some really good ones! I don't understand them but they're always great!"

"S-Sayori!" The tall, curvaceous purple haired girl seemed a bit taken aback by her compliments and blushed in turn. He almost thought he could she her shake ever so slightly.

"Alright, sure. I'll stay for a bit." JC sat with a huff and crossed his arms.

"Now, for introductions. My name is Monika and I'm the president of the Literature Club." She proudly states with a hand on her chest and head held high. "That over there is Natsuki."

"Hmph!" Natsuki crossed her arms and turned her head away. JC snickered at her, which only further soured her expression.

"You've already met my Vice President, Sayori. The last but certainly not least, Yuri." Monika said as she gestured to her. Yuri only shied away with her ever-present blush.

"H-How do you do..." Her voice was just as timid as she was, predictably.

"Now, why don't you tell us a little about yourself, mister...?"

"Just call me JC."

"Well then JC, we were just about to start our meeting. Now, has everyone brought their reading material?" Monika asked as she bent over at the hip with her sweet smile still plastered on. Nods from the girls widened Monika's smile.

"Okay then ladies, back to it! JC, since you're new and I assume Sayori _may_ have left out a few things about the Club, so I'll be filling you in on the nitty gritty. We're a literature club that focuses on all aspects of the subject. Though we mainly read here, we do often have discussion about all topics pertaining to literature, of course. So tell us, what do you like to read?"

"Well, I don't do a lot of reading myself except for a couple mechanics manuals."

"Aspiring mechanic, are we? Have you read anything else?" Something about the way she was looking at him set off several alarm bells. JC tightened up from his discomfort.

"I, Uh... I'll pretty much read whatever so long as it catches my interest."

"You'll read anything, you say? Things like comedies or horror or even manga?" Yuri and Natsuki perked up with curious eyes pointed in his direction.

"I used to read horror books when I was much younger so I guess I'm familiar with it. As for manga, I've never read one." Where Natsuki's eyes darkened with disappointment, Yuri's seemed to glow a bit brighter.

"Well, why don't you just pair up and work with one of us then? Feel free to get cozy! Not _too_ cozy though, ahaha~". Monika giggled as she turns back to her desk.

'Fuck is that supposed to mean?' He thought as he raised an eyebrow.

As the girls all went their own way JC found himself at his desk with not a single direction to take. "A-Ahem.." a small voice piped up from his left. Looking toward the source filled his eyes with nothing but deep purple. "I-I wanted to ask you, s-since you said you were familiar with the horror genre, if you wanted to possibly... read with me?" He couldn't help but find the stutter in her voice cute coupled with the way she shyly looked away at the tail end of her request. Unable to find a reason to object, JC agreed.

"Alright sure, what are we reading?" He asked as he planted his chin against a palm.

Yuri excitedly reached into her bag and withdrew a book with the image of some kind of eye like sigil. "A Portrait of Markov. It's about this woman that's trapped in a cult like camp and it-" catching herself before she could monologue, the then faded blush returned, this time lighting up her whole face. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to get carried away! S-Sometimes I jus-" her staggered apology was cut off by JC's stifled chuckles.

"You don't have to apologize. I understand being so into something you like to talk about it." For the first time in a long while, he felt as thought he could somewhat relax and open up with someone else as a rare, genuine smile pulled at his lips. Immediately upon realizing these feelings, he did the only thing he knew how to do. JC clammed right back up, not wanting to put himself at a 'vulnerability' as he saw.

"Right then, do you wanna start?" He asked, trying to recover control of himself.

"Certainly..." Yuri responded, pulling up a chair to share his desk. As she sat next to him, her close proximity wasn't uncomfortable per se; more of a feeling he wasn't quite used to as he made room. Opening the hard cover, the pages caught his concentration as he tried to immerse himself in the words Yuri had undoubtedly read before, hundreds of times.

After a few page turns, Yuri stopped reading and came back to reality for a moment as her eyes peeked up from the pages to observe the others still enthralled in their own activities. Monika's writing, Natsuki's manga and Sayori's... nap. A small smile spread her lips as she looked out the corner of her eyes at the young man she was reading with.

Feeling a warmth against herself, Yuri had realized that they'd been in such closeness for long enough that the book had captured enough attention to make them realize that they'd been right up against each other the whole time. Arms and legs touching, sharing their heat and comforts. Her heart could barely keep itself in her chest as she didn't pull away for fear of disturbing the other reader at his side. Instead, she studied his stone features. From the piercing stare of pure focus to the sharpness of his jaw. Upon noticing the bruises on his face after a couple minutes of close inspection, her fingers somehow found their way to his injuries. The feel of her fingertips against his skin sent lightning through his system as his body reacted.

Breaking concentration, his stare shot right to her as he jumped back. Her embarrassment couldn't quite seem to find a cap as her fair skin became comparable to a tomato. Her eyes widened in horror at her subconscious actions and nearly put her in tears.

'What the fuck is she doing?!' JC thought.

"O-O-Oh dear lord, I-I'm so sorry! I d-didn't mean to touch you, I...!" Her once semi-coherent sentence was now a mess of syllables and stutters while he just stared at her with a hand on his cheek, sporting a look of shock and defensiveness. JC just shook his head and sat back down as normal as he could. "Don't worry about it, just... don't touch me."

The pair sat in silence for some time, not even attempting to touch the book as Yuri sat there nearly shaking, thinking she'd already managed to offend and turn away a potential new member or even worse, a new friend. Tears formed in the corner of her eyes as she beat up and berated herself for her prior actions.

'Look what you've done now you dunce! The first time you actually manage to work up the nerve to speak to someone and you do something so stupid! Now he probably thinks you're some kind of pervert! Lord knows he probably hates me already...'

Sneaking a look over at him, he seemed to be feeling at his bruises until he caught her eye on him as turned to face her. Imagine her fright at being found staring at him. 'AND NOW HE CAUGHT YOU STARING! It's like you've completely lost control of yourself!' Her negativity and embarrassment ate away at her, bit by bit.

"You alright? You're shaking..."

The simple question brought her eyes back up to his. She was at a loss for words until she took a deep breath and stood. "Y-Yes... please excuse me." Only offering that to assuage his worries as she rushed out of the club room, it left JC even more confused at the events that had just transpired.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about her. She's-" Suddenly hearing a voice behind himself almost made the poor boy have another near heart attack. Monika's sentence was cut off as she had spooked JC enough that he'd jumped forward from his chair to stand up, knocking over the desk and Yuri's book. His pulse was out of control as he took on a defensive position while Monika took a step back with her hands forward. "God, I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to scare you." Her apology was more or less in one ear and out the other as he was trying to figure out just how she managed to leave her desk and pop up behind him without him noticing a presence of any kind.

"Y-Yeah, no worries..." he offered as he tried to wash away the look of distrust painted across his features while fixing up his mess.

Clearing her throat, Monika spoke up addressing the club. "It seems our meeting for today is adjourned. So JC, have you come up with an answer for us?" The three remaining girls looked to him expectantly, even Natsuki to his surprise. He was hesitant to reply as a 'no' would earn him nothing but saddened and disappointed looks from the girls as if he'd personally dashed their hopes. But on the other, it would cut into his personal time for an old pet project.

Sighing and rolling his shoulders while standing up normally, he looked to the three and nodded. "Yeah I... I guess I can hang around here. It'd be nice to talk to someone every now and again... well and the reading part is okay too." Just like that, they were all smiles, even if a certain pink someone had turned away to hide said smile.

The wet sound of liquid dripping on tile echoed in the small metal chamber of the girls' bathroom. The red trickled and pooled by her shoes as small, hurried breaths escaped her. The gratification each stroke of the blade brought was just what she needed to calm herself down after today's 'eventful' club meeting. The knife sat on her bag as one hand felt open air brush across her new gashes and the other feverishly brushed at the crotch of her panties.

"Khhhh~!"

All the times before, simply scarring herself would get the job done but today... today was _entirely_ different. There was a fire started inside of her, boiling her blood and sending her mind into the filthiest of gutters. Her need for satisfaction only grew as her stifled moans and labored breaths bled through the lapel of her uniform currently snug between her teeth. With each pass over her clothed yet quivering lips, her desire to punish herself only grew. Before long she was on the verge of finishing but was denied her release by the final school bell. An annoyed growl escaped her as she picked up Her possessions and went to the sink to clean up. She dared not look in the mirror a _s_ what looked back would disgust her to the very core.


	2. Chapter 2

Exiting the restroom and heading down the hall, Yuri spotted the other members all gathering around their newest addition. Sayori's cheerful hops and bounces perfectly foiling against Natsuki's scowls and huffs. But something happened when to her when she laid her eyes on JC. The mere sight of him set her fire into a raging blaze as her body heated up with a hunger she had never known before. She'd hurriedly turned herself away and began a strut down the hall in an attempt to get away from this newfound want but the heavy footsteps behind her only quickened her pulse to dangerous levels.

"Hey." That deep tone permeated her and rumbled in her chest as Yuri was almost afraid to face the one addressing her. Looking over her shoulder with apprehension bubbling, her voice was unstable like a house of cards.

"Y-Yes? Is there something you need?" Her eyes softened when he presented the book before her.

"You left this. Thought you may want it back." Now fully facing him, Yuri graciously accepted her prized novel and held it close to her chest.

"Th-Thank you, JC. I would have b-been quite upset, ehehe..." her awkward laughter only brought on a blush and a bit more embarrassment. JC however either didn't notice or simply didn't care. Shrugging and walking past, Yuri tensed up at his proximity in passing. "Oh, wh-where are you going?"

" _Eh, probably to a strip joint or whatever."_ His voice was flat and matter-of-fact as his response came lightning fast. The blush on Yuri's face worked with haste to consume all the surface area it could as her expression became painted with shock.

"Wh-wh-what?! J-JC, I didn't think you were...well into that kind of...!" Her stammering was cut off by a Look over his shoulder with his usual stone faced expression. She felt as though she'd offended him _yet again_ for a minute until he broke character and gave a smug grin. Yuri's look of shock and surprise fell into the pattern more acquainted with one typically seen on Natsuki, a quite cute huffy pout.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Yuri" As JC was leaving, she felt another pair of eyes on her. Looking back to the rest of the group with book still clutched to her chest, she saw her own club president glaring daggers. It was for a moment, only a moment, but Yuri could have sworn that Monika's eyes were much darker and lifeless before she turned back to the other two and regained her usual mature and lady-like composure, emeralds shining brightly as expected. Even just that moment of eye contact alone triggered some kind of primal fear as her legs outright refused to carry her forward for her goodbyes. She could only stand there, paralyzed.

"Buh-Bye Yuri, I'll see ya tomorrow~!" Sayori's bubbly farewell snapped her back into reality as the tide of fear receded. Natsuki and Monika waved to their friend as he returned the gesture with her usual attempt at a composed smile. Turning and leaving, her heart was finally falling back to a normal rhythm as she'd made it through yet another day... even if her sleeve was showing the faint touches of a light red.

JC had gotten to his locker and fluffed out his jacket before throwing it on over his uniform. Stuffing hands into its pockets, he was about to leave until a familiar feminine voice had greeted him. "Hello there, JC! Fancy meeting you here~."

Without even looking to the girl addressing him, he picked up his bag and locked up. "Well, that's because my things are stored here." Turning with bag slung over shoulder, JC looked upon Sayori beaming her usual brightness with hands behind her back and leaning forward a bit.

' _Taking after Monika with the poses, huh?'_

"Something I can do for you, Sayori?" He asked.

"Well... Would it be alright if I uh... walk with you?" Any more blushing and he'd have to get a blue crayon to combat all the red he's been seeing today.

' _Taking after someone else, too...'_

"I'm only going to the train station." JC had started to pass her by, but insistent as ever, Sayori jumped back into his field of view.

"My house is just after the train station! I promise I won't bug you too much!" There came the puppy eyes to strengthen her request. Knowing full well that she'd probably follow him anyway, JC just nodded and continued walking just before a _second and third_ familiar face came from the aether. Pink and Green pools reflected the lobby lights just perfectly enough to make them appear to shine more than usual.

"Ah, what a pleasant surprise~. I couldn't help but overhear your little conversation and was hoping I could also accompany you to the station." Her smile continued to strike him as off. Not because it came across as disingenuous as Monika had always struck him as wholly sincere, but because of what was lurking behind it. JC had dealt with enough unsavory individuals to know that his intuition was to be trusted. Yet something about her seemed so... _alluring_ , seductive even.

"I feel like I don't have much a choice..."

"That's because you don't! My own home is also beyond the train station~" Monika giggled as she stood right up next to her newest member. He could only sigh and shake his head before finally being able to exit the building.

" _You_ may as well come along too, Nat." JC said flatly as he crossed the threshold into the open air.

"I can't, my house is in the other direction. I'll see you all tomorrow." She sped off before rounding the corner and disappearing around the school wall.

The breeze blew through her legs, ruffling her cutesy hair and skirt. The same shade of pink that she was known for soon found itself rising in her cheeks as she donned a small, truly happy smile. Even if she was brash and crude, she could still appreciate having a new friend even if the boy didn't see it that way.

' _I just hope that_ _ **he**_ _isn't there...'_

Her walk was brisk as her stomach rumbled. Fate was a cruel and bitchy mistress as her fastest and almost only way home was by an open windowed noodle shop and a sandwich store. She used to be on the verge of tears every time she'd pass in these late years but she's grown used to the ever growing pangs of hunger and burying them deep enough to get home.

Finding her way to the door, she put an ear to the metal and listened in for a bit before her already sour expression fell to one of fear and anxiety. Withdrawing her house key and carefully slipping it into the lock, the pins quietly clicked against the metal teeth and the tumblers' hearty thud sent a clear message to Natsuki's nervous system. 'It's time to be afraid.' A gulp preceded the slow pushing of the door as the small girl fearfully entered what was supposed to be her own little haven, but was much closer to her own little Hell.

Peeking into the living room, the TV illuminated most of the open space...including the figure asleep in a chair, snoring away peacefully. Breathing a slight sigh of relief as she crept in the room and kicked off her shoes, Natsuki kept the knob twisted while closing the door to keep silent as possible. _Better safe than sorry._ Almost holding her breath as she walked very slowly, her eyes remained focused on the sleeping man as beads of sweat started to form. Slowly but surely, she found herself on the opposite end of the room and relaxed enough to turn her attention away from him. Though letting her guard down was quite the mistake as she inadvertently kicked a couple crushed beer cans that littered the way into the hall.

The man's snoring stopped with a snort as he slowly rose to consciousness. With her heart almost completely stopping, Natsuki covered her mouth instantly to muffle the scared squeaks as she took off into her room and closed the door.

"Huuh...? Who...whossere? Nnnugh...Natsuki?! _Natsuki_!"

 _And thus began the yelling._

She tried her absolute best to be silent and was focusing all her the might her little body could muster to possibly will herself out of existence. No such luck however as the screaming drew closer. Hurriedly tearing into her bag to try to get out her homework and a pen, she'd hoped that she could try to appease him by saying she'd been in her room doing schoolwork like a good girl...it was a hope anyway. The door was thrown open as another small squeak came out, a taller man with pushed back, silver hair and thick stubble stood and towered over her (even if it was relatively easy to do with her stature.) The man stared and wobbled a bit before taking a swig of his beer and looking at his daughter with a cold stare.

"The fuck are you doin'...? You been sneakin' around out here and gettin' into my shit?!" His slurring was painfully apparent.

"N-No! I just got home since school ended and-!"

"Shuddup! I 'on't wanna fuckn' hear it!" The man whipped his can at the defenseless girl as she threw her arms up to shield her face. He grew a hint of a sick smile as he looked down to his cowering daughter. Her crying reverberated throughout the room and down the hall.

"Well...guess I gotta be a good dad and punish you.." Natsuki's eyes widened as far as they could as she shrieked and tried to back away, only finding herself against the wall. The waterworks were on in full display as her nails dug straight into the drywall.

"Dad, please! I-I promise I'll b-be a good girl! Please please please just _not that again_!" Natsuki was in hysterics as her begging, screaming and pleading was muffled by her father closing the bedroom door behind himself.

The idle chatter between Monika and Sayori was filtered out as JC kept his eyes on the people nearby. People dressed casually just walking their dogs, going for a jog. The suited salaryman on his cellphone going on about projections for the quarter or even the occasional couple with interlinked arms and smiles on their faces. One such couple passing drew his attention as their happy chatter threw them into a small laughing fit.

"...isn't that right, JC?"

"Huh? What?" His attention turned to Monika standing a little too close to his left. Her proud smile faced forward as he believed he saw her also facing the laughing lovers.

"I was talking about how nice it is for people to find comfort in one another like that. Don't you think so too?"

Moving a bit to his right in order to distance himself from Monika, he just shrugged and brushed off the thought. As the group walked, Monika slowly tried inching her way back to JC's side only to come up short once the they arrived at the train station. Her little pout in frustration was quickly wiped and replaced by her usual confident smile as she stepped before him.

"I believe it is farewell for now, but don't worry! Well all see each other tomorrow~."

Sayori was uncharacteristically quiet as JC hadn't heard her speak much the latter half of the walk. Looking over to check on her, he found that she was wholly focused on devouring what appeared to be some kind of meat bun she'd seemed to produce out of near nowhere. Her vigorous chewing halted and her bright blue eyes flicked over to meet his.

"Mmmhmmhphh-!" An attempt was made but the message was cut off by her shoving her hands against her mouth in a flash of embarrassment. It was probably something along the lines of a 'goodbye' to her new, as she liked to imagine, _friend_.

Monika could only giggle as Sayori couldn't quite pull herself together enough to give a solid response. Their little farewell had been interrupted by the sounds of the train roaring down the tracks. The steel wheels shrieked as they ground in the rails, sparking and wailing to a halt.

"O-Oh, before I forget!" Monika stepped forward with her phone clutched in both hands, blushing as she tried to keep her composure while focusing on maintaining eye contact. "I hope this isn't too forward of me but, may I...have your number? I-I just like to be able to contact my club members if anything happens!"

"Uh, yeah sure..." JC questioned if that was her true motive for asking. ' _If you just need to contact me, what are you embarrassed about?'_

Her smile deepened as she hastily tapped away at her screen before looking back up expectantly and waiting with a spark in her eye. Rattling off his number, Monika continued tapping until she turned the screen to JC to see and verify for himself. "Is this correct?"

"Yeah that's it." Something about someone he knew so casually without any reason but to keep contact moved him, made him feel wanted even. The only people to ever have this were previous business contacts when he was a young hooligan. Monika smiled and leaned forward and was about to say something before her eyes went to his right. Naturally, JC would follow suit to find Sayori hurriedly tapping at her own phone with part of her meat bun hanging out of her mouth. Upon seeing the attention on her, Sayori quickly hid her phone behind her back and looked away trying to play innocent.

' _Hmph, well I guess that little airhead can have his number... it won't matter in the end.'_

JC gave a half smile and shook his head as he stepped on the train, giving an over-the-shoulder wave as the doors closed behind him.

Monika and her Vice President bid each other adieu and went their separate ways after watching the train take off. Soon she would find herself unlocking the ornate wooden door to her home in the more 'high-class' neighborhood than they had went to school in. Even if she knew her parents weren't home and would not be for quite some time, she would always announce herself as she entered.

"I'm home... not that anyone cares."

Sliding off her shoes and placing them neatly in the rack, Monika happily skipped up the stairs with her mad grin still plastered in place. Bounding through the doorway and letting go of her bag, she threw herself into the bed and girlishly giggled into a pillow she had tightly wrapped her arms around. Her legs kicking in glee at her comforter while she buried her face in said pillow, breathing a happy sigh. Now with the ability to talk to JC whenever she wanted, she felt as though she couldn't be stopped.

' _I should text him to let him have my number!'_ Launching herself across the bed, she rifled through the discarded bag and retrieved the phone before flying back onto the mattress. Unlocking the device and scrolling to her contacts, her eyes stopped right at the one she was hunting for.

 _J.C._

 _XXX-XXX-XXXX_

Almost slamming her fingertip down on his name and then the 'Message' icon, her precise and hurried movements had ground to a halt as Monika's mind was as blank as the screen. It wasn't a feeling she'd had too often but it was never usually to this degree as for the first time in quite a while, Monika felt _unsure_ of herself. Her mind raced to come up with the perfect message.

' _What do I say to him? Wait, he doesn't even have his phone... But it it'll be at his house waiting for him! I should type something inspirational! ...no, that would come off as strange. Ahhhhh, what should I saaaaaay!'_

The side of Monika she would never let anyone see. Unsure, unconfident and stuttering in thought. She had spent most of her life developing this image of the perfect woman, an upstanding model that all women should strive to be. But here, in the comforts of her little space in the world, her true self could come out of its perfect porcelain shell. She _was_ human after all... _probably_.

Lost in deep thought about the intricacies of talking to the 'oh so mysterious' JC, Monika decided on a simple yet straightforward greeting. The confident club president had returned along with her widely known smile.

" _Hello JC, this is Monika from the Literature Club. I just wanted to thank you again for joining and welcome you aboard as our fifth member."_

Hesitantly hitting send, she clutched her phone and watched the screen as the spinning circles let her know the greeting was being delivered continue spinning as she became more and more anxious as she began thinking of other ways to say what she wanted. But it was too late now as the 'Message Sent' notification alerted her of the process completion. If the anxiety was ignorable then, it sure wasn't now.

Two hours had passed as Monika had lain there, checking her phone on and off while hoping to get some response or even a 'thanks' as acknowledgement. Her anxiety had turned to a bit of a down state until her phone rang out with a ding. Her reflexes must have been faster than Bruce Lee with how fast she'd sprang up and unlocked her phone. Her giddy grin quickly replaced by sheer disappointment as the name read out 'Sayori'. Falling back into her bed, she typed out a huffy yet proper response. The feeling of being forgotten ate away at her, she couldn't stand to wait any longer. Closing her eyes and concentrating her thoughts, her mind drifted to him as he appeared in her consciousness.

B̈̂̃̏b̡̡͈͚̥̼͔̬̐́͌̂̾̓͂͐͌͝s̜̭̳̲̗͔̭͙͌͊̏̀͆̒͘ͅş̙͖͈̇̀̓͆́͟͡n̵͈̮͖̝͈̼͐͗̌̏̿̐͛͊̅͟͝d̶̢̡̝̥͔̬̦̰̗͑̊̂̃̒́͑͗̿͜͞j̪͙̪̮̞̿̇̒͗̅̀̉̾͗͂j͍̝̹͈̳͈̉̎̒̐͑͆͘s̷̼̲̰̬̠̥̬͙̿͌̊̽̽͡h̡̛̛̙͎͎̫͈̱̳͑͋͟͝ḩ͕̺̪̘̣̓͐̾̇̓̕̚ḩ̛̠̫̠̣̘̼̒̈́̀̇̈́̕͠h̨̜̺̺͎͆̇̓̂͝ͅh͍̪͇̺͒̌̊́͆̿͟G̢̹̙̜̼͎͉̲̊̀̿̏̂̓̅̅͝G̷̡̡̨̖̣͙͇̯̲̘̈́̓̏̿̚H̴̩̤͎̬̗̳͕͕̞̭͗͊̿̀͘͡G̴̲̰͉̙͚̉̀̈̀̀ͅv̘̝̝̖̻̫̾̑̀́͌̍͢c̨̢̛͙͖͉̖̰̒̄̇͘̚ç̷̱̭͇̪̣̟̙̉̾̅͋̃̂̋̑̚͜͠ͅǧ̨̱̪̬̩̋̄̉́ͅḩ̩̞̳͈̝̽͆̾̿͟͞w̧̙̙̣̺̽͊͆͘͜͡A̵̢͇̞͇̫͍̼̫̾́̂̍̔̑͟͠͝ͅÄ̢̨͓̜̝͕̣́̈̔̏͑̓̅ͅͅAẠ̴̡̠͍͇̣͒̃͆̔̓̽̊̕ͅA̴̢̢̛̫̲̯̠͍̐̑͆̎̕͜͡͝h̷̬͉͍̩̺̳̗͙̝̃̊̀͊̿̚͞͝h̺͉̖̟̻̗͎̰͚͛͑͊́̈́̏̇͘͢͝͝a͇̤͍̮͍̘̝̹͊̋̀̀̓̒͋͟j̷̛͕̭̫̠̤̯̯̺̝̓̄̅̏̏̓͐͘d̉̈b̜͚̭̻̘͙͈̖̒̅̿́͘ş̜̯̠̜̝̼̣̽̀̀͆͠ͅ

' _One new message: J.C.'_

Monika's eyes quickly began taking in the contents of his long-awaited response to her initial message. Her eyes oozed with confidence as she grinned deviously, face ablaze with a deep blush.

'All he needed was a little reminder~'

" _Thanks for the welcome. Would have responded sooner but I just got home."_

The train ride back home was quick and painless as the one this morning. Now seeing the city skyline from the opposing direction, JC stared off into space as the train car gently shook and swayed with the natural motions it took. Instinctively reaching to his pocket and searching for his device, his heart jumped at it not being there only to remember that he'd carelessly left it on the counter at home.

Arriving at his stop and descending the stairs, the chilly breeze blew his hair and gave him a small shiver. The cracked pavement of the city sidewalks always made him smile and think about how these walkways could be so broken, so beaten down and used yet could still keep going with no upkeep. The weeds emerging from between the hunks of concrete reached for sunlight, their will to survive and thrive against the stony oppression often went unnoticed.

Reaching his home certainly brightened his mood as the box beside his door caught his eye. JC flashed a toothy smile as the pace to get to the door hastened with delight. ' _About time..._ ' He thought as he attempted to pick it up. Finding it to be quite heavy, he sat it back down and elected to unlock and open his door before lugging the package inside and kicking the home's entrance shut.

JC had forgotten everything existed except for himself, this important box's contents and where they would end up. His grin only grew as he hustled straight into the garage and flipped the switches with the cardboard edge. The buzz of the lights hummed loudly, calling to itself to wake up and spread its light, illuminating the large car-shaped tarp that sat in the center of the room. Grabbing the edge and tossing it with great enthusiasm, the grille shined a brilliant chrome as a large ' _ **SS**_ ' took center stage. JC's heart raced as he walked to the drivers side door, tossed off more tarp and entered the vehicle. Popping the hood and lovingly closing the door, his eye spotted a smudge on the badge that adorned the front-left fender. Such blasphemy could and would not be tolerated. Rubbing a thumb across the chrome of the logo, he read it again with the same smile he always had.

' _ **SS'**_

' _ **454'**_

He always called it his ' _one nice thing_ ' that he always had. The only thing driving him forward to press on in hopes that one day, he would have his one nice thing pieced together with his tender care and affection. Every awful moment, every bit of poverty he suffered and every questionable act he had committed has lead up to this one day. The day he's finally completed his dream.

Immediately tearing into the box after marveling at his baby once more, the chrome glinted in the fluorescence of his garage lights. Reaching in, he saw his arms still enveloped by black leather and remembered that things _outside_ of this small room existed. "I'll be back for you..." JC said to his love before leaving to slip into something more appropriate and set the mood.

Entering his room and hurriedly stripping down to his boxers, JC put on a pair of jeans laying in the corner and decided that was enough to get his work done. Walking back out into the living room, he approached the turntable and popped the cover. His favorite album still lie there awaiting its next flip, of which JC happily obliged. The pin read straight into the vinyl's grooves and the speakers gave them life as the tones dribbled out.

" _I can't shake this feeling from my head._

 _There's a devil sleeping in my bed,_

 _He's watching you from across the way._

 _I cannot make this feeling go away..._ "

The satisfied smile came back as he cranked the volume, spilling the verses into the rest of the house and possibly, sidewalk. Re-entering the garage, just as he promised, JC turned to a tall tool chest and scoured the drawers one by one, collecting what was needed for the task. Turning with unbridled excitement and joy back to his prime cause, the young man went to work installing the final piece of the beautiful puzzle.

Elbows deep in the belly of the beast, JC was putting on the finishing touches and making sure the installation had gone as necessary. He inspected the bolts, gaskets and finally, the belt as it bellowed a low twang as he prodded to see its tightness. Standing back and looking over his years of hard work filled him with immense pride as the picture had finally come together. Gently closing the hood and tossing the tarp back over, JC made his way to the living room and flopped down onto the couch with a stretch. He felt as though he had earned his afternoon of rest after the mind-numbing boredom and realization that most people will think he's some kind of violent beast after nearly putting another student through a wall.

Closing his eyes, the music worked its magic like it did during his sleepless night and carried him away.

 _The feel of hands on his body made every muscle their phantom fingers touched tense up. The cold limbs enveloped him and drew his body into a chilling embrace, he was powerless to resist_ _ **her**_ _. The fingers brushed over his abdomen, eliciting an aroused gasp from the captive. Truly it had been too long since he'd felt a touch like this, his desire for more burned away at him and commanded he offer himself. The icy chill of the ghostly hands grabbing at his hardened muscles contrasted with the wet warmth of a tongue lapping its way up his neck. His nape was the most sensitive area of his skin and it clearly showed as an excited grunt left his lips to be answered by a feminine giggle._

 _S_ _̶̝̟̟͖̝̤͊̓́̂̔͗̇̕͠_ _u_ _̗͉͖̟̯̬̤͑͋̓̈͆̅̐̉͂̍ͅ_ _c_ _̶̨̙͓͓̯̣͑̓̎͌͞_ _h_ _̷̱̟̰͉̺̗̅́̿̈͛͒̊͆͡͠_ _a_ _h̆_ _̷̦͙͕̝͚̓́̐͜͢͟͢͡ͅ_ _ȃ̃_ _̝͉̣̞̦̤̞̻̲̭͛̑̍̽͡͡_ _ŕ̃_ _̲̟͖̖̰̤͕̩̹̒̑̿͟_ _d̛_ _̨̼̥̱̮̞̱̩͕̪͌̃̒̋͋̇̔_ _b̈_ _̶̧̯̬̱̦͕͖́͋͂͊̋̎͘͘_ _ơ_ _̡̲͚͚͎̣̠̪̯͊̆̍͂̅́̐_ _d̀_ _̶̧͉͍͔̠͇͐́̆̐́͊̂_ _y_ _̡̺̥̲̹̜̹͖̰̓́̎͆̄̑͢͡͝_ _._ _̛̘̠̬̀̐͆̃̓͜͜͡͡_ _.._

 _The feeling of being touched and teased left only to be replaced by that of another body wrapping itself around his. This new entity was much warmer against his bare skin, the feeling of the thick legs wrapping around his waist drove him wild along with the breasts that pushed against his chest._

 _His hands found their way the soft thighs of the mystery lover and squeezed her with the passion of an animal. Her moans reverberated in him as vision was starting to make its return. The picture was so very blurry but he didn't need to see when he knew just what he was feeling._

 _T̵͉̦͈̼̱̮͎̍̓͊̂͐͂á͉̫̘̻̠̝͚̲̅̈́͆̆̇ǩ̢̗͙̘͈̜̖̹̜̌̽̔̓̔͢͝ȅ ṁ̡̛͚̥̠̒͐͆͜è̡̡̛͎̬͉̱̖͙͋͗͞͞͞ a̺̜͍̥͇͚̭͛͆̐́̈́̽̋̔̓̕ḷ̨̼̥̻͉̗̮̙̽͋̊͆̚͞͠͠r̖͕̲̗̱̻̺̲̀͊̓́͂̕͝e̮̭̖̖̳͉͔̘̊̏̃̂͋̕͜a̷̙͔̮͕͚̘͇̼̠̬͂̋̓̽̊̊̇͛͋͑d̡̬͖̮̤͗̒̈̇̈̆̽̚͝͞y̡͉͚͖͐͐̐͛̉͌̐̈́̿̽͢..._

 _Her wish was his command as his hot, hardened member slid, teasingly along her entrance. With hands sliding from those smooth thighs to a pleasantly round, tight bottom. It was not without it's own softness however as his driving instinct told him to test the waters with a firm slap. The resulting scream of pleasure pierced his ears as the nails dug into his flesh. She grunted and stared right into his eyes just mere inches from his face, holding his head forward._

 _I̶̡̮̦͎̠̪͌͂̓͑̈̊͛̇͟ͅ ç͕͓̤̬͎̌̅̄͗͌̃̀̾̚a̶̪͙͇͎͑̿̈́̌́̚͡ͅͅn̢̘̗̠̰͚̩͙͊͊̄͑̐̑̈͂͒'̴̲̝̞̥̹̬̩̱̱̦̊͗̋̽̊́͂͞͝͞t̴̡̙̲̖̪̰̣͚̻̒͌̃͗̚ͅ ť͓̤̤̻͚͕͎͖̾̿͆͠͞a̷̡͈̼̥̙͑͂̌͂̍͡͡k̵̢̹̤̺̰͐͌́͒̎͊͂̈̕e̡̘̞̝̜̖̬͂͋̉̐̃͟ ìt̷̺̙͇̭̼̺͇̆̓́͋͂̉̿͛̓͞ a̷̢̢̤̹͖̟̱͕̦͊͒̔̀̅̏͞ṅ̵̪̣͈͈͈̟͚͓́̿͒͝ŷ̡̯͖̜͉̳͕̺̞̂̇͆̾̾̿͜͞m̵̡͙͓̞̘̙͈͚̰̄͑̓́͘͜ő̶̱͚͙͕͕̑̊̇̚͟r̵̩̙͙͇̫̈͐́̏͌̽̀̕ę̶͙̭̤̗́̽̂̎̓̂̉͂͡!̢̳̠̺͍̟̏̑̐̿͘͢͢͞ͅ_

 _She forced her waiting wetness over his throbbing member and engulfed him whole. As his tip kissed her womb, her body was already twisting in the convulsions of pleasure. Grinding her hips on his, she knew that he was as deep as she could take him...but she yearned for deeper. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she began thrusting herself against him, allowing him to believe that he would get away only to be shoved right back into the embrace of the quivering walls that hugged his shaft._

 _Falling victim to his own desires, he wrapped his strong arms around her slim waist and began aiding her as the need for release toppled his will. Gasping and moaning like a bitch in heat, her screaming never stopped as skin slapped against skin and fluids coated them both. She sunk her teeth into his neck as she felt herself closing on the edge of release. His body jolted at her sudden lovebite, causing him to flood her womb with his hot seed._

 _The gasping and panting followed as her shaking body arched and tensed. It's tenderness apparent as she fell limp atop him and buried her face back into his neck with an affectionate nuzzle. With the remaining strength she had, her supple lips softly pressed against his own in a deep, moaning kiss._

 _The last thing he saw as she pulled away was a shade of the purest green he could imagine._

 _JC woke with a start, throwing himself up from his comfy headrest and covered in sweat. Putting a hand to his chest to calm his feverish heart, he took several breaths then moved his hand upward to brush his stray locks back. JC looked around and sat there collecting himself while the music continued to play._

' _Ringfinger._

 _Promise carved in stone..._

 _Deeper than the sea._

 _Ringfinger._

 _Sever flesh and bone,_

 _and offer it to me...'_

 _Cautiously rising from the couch, he felt quite uneasy while his beloved record kept playing its vibrant tune. All color aside from what was artificially added, had left his flesh. His eyes traced over every detail he could perceive. From the glass he'd left on the counter this morning to the dust on his PlayStation. The rips on the surface of the old couch to the phone left so carelessly on the counter._

' _Wait, my phone! Shit, that's where it was...'_ _He thought as he plucked his device from the countertop and checked it._

' _One new message: XXX-XXX-XXXX'_

" _Hello JC, this is Monika from the Literature Club. I just wanted to thank you again for joining and welcome you aboard as our fifth member."_

' _Ah shit, that's right.'_ _JC thought as he tried to come up with a believable excuse._

" _Thanks for the welcome. Would have responded sooner but I just got home."_

 _Near instantly, the reply to his message came. Needless to say, he was quite surprised at her reply speed._

" _Does it really take you two hours to get home? I have a feeling that's a little fib!"_

' _How the hell does she know that?'_

" _Sorry I got caught up in something else."_

" _Hmm, Alright I forgive you. But you'll have to stay after school with me for your punishment!"_

 _JC raised an eyebrow, pondering what her message could mean. His filthy mind had already suggested the idea that she was looking for an excuse to be alone so that she could initiate sex, but he soon pushed that ridiculous thought away. 'She's not that kinda girl.' He thought._

" _We already stay after school. Club ends at 4."_

" _Shoot, you're right. I guess you'll just have to see me on the weekend then!"_

' _I'm not going to do some menial shit to appease her.'_ _Now she was beginning to annoy him._

" _Maybe_ _"_

" _Only maybe? Don't make me come after you~"_

" _I'll see you tomorrow"_

 _Walking into his room and setting his phone on the charger, he began to smell that sweat he worked up during his dreams. 'Christ, I need a shower...'_


	3. Chapter 3

Each pulse of pain brought back the nightmarish memories of past abuses. The girl that lie still in her bed had no light in those pink, reddened eyes. Her cheeks and sheets she lay on showed the clear stains of her tears amongst other things. Her sore and tender body had small marks streaking her abdomen and her flesh was rubbed raw as red spots dotted spaces long her skin. She shifted a bit before closing her eyes and passing out after a night of fatherly torture. Hours felt like seconds as the rest of the night passed without incident. The repetitive alarm of the bedside clock hit her ears, alerting her that the day will begin with or without her approval. Having no other choice but to react and keep schedule, Natsuki lifted her limp body from the mattress, grabbed a uniform from the closet and went to the shower. The warmth of the water did well to soothe some of the physical pains that would ail her for the day to come but the mental trauma never really went away, just ignored long enough to pretend it wasn't there.

Finishing up and stepping out, she dried off and wiped the fog off the mirror to check herself. ' _Nothing my uniform won't cover...'_ she thought, hoping she'd never have to suffer the embarrassment of being found out and perhaps and even _worse_ chain of treatments from dear old Dad for being found out. But then her eyes caught on to one lone black and blue spot that stood out straight on her neck and almost sent her into another fit right then and there as the thought of it being noticed froze her heart over. Natsuki slipped on her uniform hastily, wanting to get it out of sight as soon as possible. She brushed her teeth and pinned up her hair in that cutesy manner before lightly slapping her cheeks to pump herself up to operating standard. After leaving the bathroom, a crack of thunder shook the house and knocked out power momentarily before the lights flickered back to life.

' _Great... Already a shit morning.'_ Huffing through grit teeth, Natsuki went back and put on an old raincoat she kept in the closet and tried hunting for her umbrella to no avail. Her frustration boiled to almost slamming the closet door but the fear of waking the monster again doused her rage quite quickly.

The hallway was still littered with those cans she'd kicked upon getting home after school yesterday and the tears welled up with the anger of thinking it was her own mistake that brought this on. She had half a mind to punt them across the room and storm out but she was never one to make the same mistake twice. Calmly breathing and wiping her emotion away, Natsuki stepped outside into another downpour like yesterday morning with bag above head, trying to keep dry.

Normally, a breakfast would have preceded a students departure from home but she knew there wasn't any food to be had from that fridge. May as well have called it a glorified beer locker as that's pretty much the only thing in there aside from a few frozen dinners. Natsuki had gotten brave once as the hunger had set in while her father was asleep and attempted to thaw one out by taking the microwave in her room to silently defrost it, but her emaciated body trembled as the nerves and malnutrition shook her sweaty hands, causing her to drop the appliance. Natsuki's punishment left her unable to walk for an hour.

The walk to school was harsh as the rain pooled enough in the streets to splash pedestrians as cars passed. Some were fortunate and evaded most of it but Natsuki was not so lucky. She cursed every step through her sniffling and tears on the way as God had no mercy to spare her this morning and perhaps even the rest of the day...or did he? Rumbling down the street was a car louder than all others, who's waves reverberated in her small body and could help but draw her attention.

Natsuki rolled her eyes as she turned to look at whoever this was, causing a scene. ' _Oh great, who's this schmuck?'_

The car had an old, angular body style with an intimidating feel to it, as if it would reduce you into a stain straight on the hood without a care. The black paint job mirrored the world around it in a much darker and warped tone as the water running over its glossy surface further distorted the reflection. But what caught her attention the most wasn't anything on the car itself, but it's very driver. She could clearly see the white ponytail even through the waterfall over the glass, his eyes looking right back.

Pulling right up to the curb where she stood must have triggered a reflex as she took a hesitant step back. He waited for only a moment before honking the horn twice in rapid succession, signaling for the girl to approach. The door was heavy and it creaked as Natsuki opened it. Drawing up her usual 'tsun' attitude, she huffily asked, "What do _you_ want?"

"Just get in..."

The alarm had shaken JC awake as usual, straight from whatever cacophony of anguish his subconscious chose to torture him with that night. A few shaky breaths and a rub of the eyes cleared away enough sleep to perform the morning rituals.

 _Get up_

 _Work out_

 _Eat_

 _Shower_

The final touch of the morning was slipping on the uniform straight from the freshness of the factory plastic bag. The cloth still had traces of industrial scents to it as one might expect. A crack of thunder in the distance told him that today, his jacket would probably be needed again. Throwing it on for good measure, JC approached his moderate gathering of bottles on the kitchen counter and looked among his options. Carefully selecting his poison, he poured a couple sips worth and took a shot. A shudder took him as the bitterness of the alcohol wasn't the most pleasant thing to experience in early in the morning.

'Just get through today and you've got all weekend...' he assured himself as he slipped his shoes on by the door. One last pat down of his pockets told him a vital part was once again missing...this time it was the house keys. Bounding back to his bedroom, he hooked a finger through the carabiner and spun them around as if he were a cowboy twirling his gun. As they jingled into place with the pull of gravity, the one new one stood out the most. It was an ordinary but longer shafted key as the memory clicked into place. A wide smile grew as JC approached the garage door instead to finally experience the new pleasure of the first drive, even if it was just going to school.

Without a moment to spare, he grabbed ahold of the tarp covering his prized chariot and threw it straight off with force, filling with bubbling excitement. Slipping the key into the ignition and giving a loving twist, the engine roared to life just in sync with his heart. The fruits of his labor were now fully felt as appreciated as the satisfaction of the car's seductive rumble captivated him. But JC had no time to sit and appreciate the wonderful hum of the car as he clicked the garage door opener and pulled out into the driveway. He couldn't help but rev it just a little higher as he pulled out into the streets, the engine's excited screams of pure power dominated the air of the neighborhood.

On a typical drive, JC would have plugged in his phone and blasted what music he had at the time but today was quite a special occasion as the initial drive was all that was on his mind. Even if it was a rainy, dreary day, that wouldn't be enough to detract from the experience of living his dream. Making a couple turns and weaving through traffic, he found himself across town and resting in a line of cars awaiting the green to get going once more. Though just up ahead, he thought he could see something sticking out of the crowd of students making their way down to the final destination.

' _Wait a minute, is that...?'_

With the striking pink and short stature, there was no one else it could have been. He watched her shake and shiver as the cracks of thunder and the chill of the rain took their toll on the poor little girl.

' _You know what you should do, jackass...'_

' _But why should I? I don't want her soggy ass in my new fucking car.'_

' _Your seats are leather, you'll be fine. Just towel it down and stop whining. God, be fucking nice for once!'_ His conscience got the best of him again as his frustration greased the wheels of his surrender.

"Ugh, fine! _Fuck_!" He yelled audibly as the line finally began moving at a decent pace. Pulling right up on the curb, he sat and waited for her to approach but she seemed quite nervous to do so. Making eye contact and honking twice got the message through that it was safe to come closer. The girl opened to door and addressed him in her expected attitude.

"What do _you_ want?"

' _This bitch.'_

"Just get in..."

The strong desire to escape the storm overshadowed any doubt she may have about riding with someone she'd only met yesterday. Plopping down in the seat and using whatever strength she still had to close the heavy steel door, Natsuki buckled up and crossed her arms in a pout. The engine revved up loud as JC tore away from the curb and sped off down the street.

"So...forgot your umbrella?" He asked, just trying to break the awkward silence.

"Couldn't find it this morning, otherwise I'd have it." Natsuki was more holding herself and trying to warm up than being huffy and crossing her arms, but it still came off as the usual little shit attitude JC had seen before. Though the interior of her ride seemed to drag her eyes all around its features as she had never been in a car this different than the few times she's be driven places. "How old _is_ this car? It looks so..." unable to find the right words, her thought trailed off.

"Around fifty years old. Well, most of the parts are anyway except the radio."

"Well I could guess that your radio was new seeing as the clock on your...uh...front piece has hands."

JC couldn't help but chuckle audibly at her grasping at straws to figure out what this mysterious 'front piece' was called.

"Dashboard."

"Are you laughing at me?! Well I'm sorry I don't know much about cars!" She balled up her fists, grabbing large tufts of her coat and squeezing as hard as she could. JC only half-smiled at her little puffy reaction

"Calm down, Nat. It's just funny listening to you guess what it is." Calling her 'Nat' cooled her off pretty quick as she wasn't used to being addressed so casually. Looking over at her driver, Natsuki's eyes widened as she spoke up.

"D-Did you just call me Nat?" That cute but shrill voice of hers had an adorable shake to it.

"Yeah, easier to say. Why, don't like it?"

"No no, it's fine! It's just that...I'm not used to-" Her sentence was cut off by a loud grumbling of her stomach, followed by a large blush as she quickly turned away and hung her head.

' _Ah fuck, here we go...'_ His conscience once again commanding his actions, had him pull into the drive through of some place he found along the way. Truth be told, he was still a bit peckish even after breakfast. Pulling up to the window he made his order and looked to Natsuki.

"Alright, what do you want?"

"Its fine, I don't want anything." Her poutyness made it's stubborn return as she refused food. It broke her heart a little as she did but she couldn't afford to be in someone else's debt. Pulling forward, JC paid and was handed a bag before getting back on the road. Reaching in, he produced two wrapped up sandwiches and set one in his lap before tossing one to the pink little girl. Her adamant yet faltering stare out the window quickly jumped to the food that plopped onto her lap as the surprise made her heart skip a beat.

"W-What is this...?" The cracks in her mask only deepened as its smell only goaded her stomach into grumbling more.

"Breakfast sandwich."

"Well, I get that but why?"

"Do you want me to pretend I _didn't_ hear your stomach?" His sarcasm earned him a scowl from Natsuki.

"I don't want your pity _or_ charity! I would have been f-!"

" _Just eat the fuckin' food, goddammit."_ Having enough of her bickering, it was time to finally put Natsuki in her place as he raised his voice a tad. It was more than enough to get the message across as she recoiled but did slowly unwrap her overdue breakfast. The fluffy eggs partially covered by the melted cheese and grease of the bacon that sit between two English muffins was a beautiful sight as her fingers shook a little bit as they felt its warmth flow into them. Parting her lips to take the first bite, but JC piped up once more.

"Hold it. If _any_ of that sees the floor of this car, I'll be seeing _you_ clean it out for the next two hours. Understand?" Stern but fair, he was. Who wouldn't be if they'd just gotten their dream car and graciously allowed someone to eat in it? Natsuki nodded hurriedly as she couldn't stomach waiting any longer. JC gave her the green light as he partially unwrapped his and began to dig in. After his third chomp, he looked over to check how she was enjoying it only to see her balling up the wrapper and putting it in the bag with a satisfied smile.

"Christ, did you even taste it?"

Being a different type of girl, Yuri always did enjoy the rain. Listening to it, watching it or even walking out during a light drizzle to enjoy the cool air never failed to lighten her mood. Though even for her tastes, the storm was too much to bear without her umbrella. The rain battered it on the morning walk but living rather close to school always had some advantages. Her shoes splashed the shallow puddles that dotted the sidewalk as she appeared to be deep in thought.

' _I truly hope I didn't scare him away with my outbursts. Well, he_ did _say that he'd be seeing me tomorrow so-'_ Yuri's train was suddenly derailed by the obnoxious revving of someone's engine. The anxiety gave way to sheer annoyance as she turned with an incredulous look to see just what could be so stupidly loud. A black blur passed right by as the draft nearly picked up her skirt before she'd shoved her hand straight between her legs to keep it down. Looking back to the car with an angry and blushing glare, several other girls were doing the same as the boys either had their eyes on _them_ or the car blowing by.

' _Ugh, such immature flaunting!_ _Yes, we're all_ very _impressed by your car!'_ The last line was so heavily laden with sarcasm that it would sink like a rock in a river.

Attempting to maintain her ladylike stature on her walk, she cleared her throat, brushed her skirt once more and continued until she saw the very same car turn right into the school lot just down the way. If she'd had the nerve and could stifle her stuttering for a few seconds, she'd be more than happy to give that show-off a piece of her mind. Rounding the corner, her eyes fixated on the car and watched its inhabitants as she slowed her pace. To any outsiders watching, she would have seemed much like an assassin, stalking her prey. When the doors opened and the occupants emerged, Yuri stopped in her tracks and stared silently.

' _I-Is that JC? Wait...Natsuki too?! Did she already get this close to him in the span of a day? There's no way she could have, what that horribly abrasive personality!_ '

Watching the pair enter the building, the pains in her chest returned as her heart started it's downward spiral again. Her hot, shaky breath was visible in the chilled air as the storm continued pouring itself over the school. Finally shaking off the feeling of leadened legs, Yuri entered the vestibule and shook off her umbrella before her eyes darted around the hall, attempting to get a visual. Just above the heads of the mob stood one in particular with his white ponytail and typical stone faced stare. He seemed to be talking to someone as his lips were moving but he never faced away from his locker. Steeling her nerves and wading through the forest of bodies, she kept her head down and shoulders in as she carved her way. Her path was suddenly cut off as she thumped straight into someone, head on.

"A-Ah, I'm sorry! Please excuse me!" She offered weakly as she attempted to go around.

"Don't worry about it." That voice could call her from the deepest of comas and she would always respond in an instant. Her head snapped up to attention in recognition of said tone.

"Oh, g-good morning JC... H-How are you today?" Just looking at him for this long made her awkwardly shift in place as her knees started to rub together.

"Still alive but I'm feeling much better."

"Oh? I-Is there an occasion?"

Natsuki piped up as she waved her up straight up in Yuri's face. "I'm here too you know!"

"Ah, right... Sorry, I didn't see you, Natsuki."

"Yeah whatever." She responded flatly, crossing her arms and looking away. "The occasion here is that JC built a car or something..."

"Wait, you built a car? A-An entire car?" She seemed to be under the impression that cars can only be put together by machinists or their machines in factories, pumping them out on the assembly line. Truth is, anyone with know-how, parts and tools can put them together in their back yard.

"Had it in pieces for a while now, just finished it last night. I even drove it here today." Shutting his locker and moving people aside to escape the claustrophobia building around him, the girls followed his path.

"That's incredible! I didn't know you could do something like that."

"I've been around cars for a while now. Kinda second nature to me."

The morning bell rang out to begin the busy day, the last day everyone had to power through before the always awaited weekend would begin. Making their way down the halls, the group talked on various things such as JC's mechanical ability to what books they were currently reading and of course, the poems they wrote.

"Wait...what poem?" JC asked, genuinely clueless as to what they're talking about.

"The ones we wrote for the club, duh." Natsuki responded so nonchalantly.

"Didn't Monika tell you that we were all to write poems to present in the club before the week ended?" Yuri's eyes spelt concern as they met his.

"No, she didn't mention anything like that to me."

"I see... What will you do?"

"Well I can either hack one together and look like a lazy idiot or I can just not show up with anything and look like an even bigger lazy idiot." His flat tone seemed to suggest that he didn't quite care about the potential consequences of negligence. Yuri showed a bit of shock as she realized this and inched closer, her will bolstered by her hope to change his stance.

"But why would you do that? Poetry is very important to the club, as are you! Free writing is the truest expression of oneself to their peers."

"Yuri, I've only been here for a day and some change so far. Don't bullshit me, I'm not that important."

Now she was straight up offended by his words. Gripping her belongings tighter and gritting her teeth, Yuri couldn't help but puff up at his cold response.

"How could you say that about yourself? You are _very_ important to the club _and me_ -" Unfortunately, she was unable to catch herself before that slipped out. The blush that followed would have made her glow like hot iron had the lights been off. Quickly shifting attention to the floor as the utter embarrassment was way too much for her to bear, her shoulders scrunched before she took off down the hall.

Another outburst from the strange girl made JC stop to try and understand just what she was doing. He must not have heard everything before she ran off as he simply brushed it aside as one of her odd quirks.

"What's her deal?" Natsuki asked after bearing witness.

"No idea. She usually like this?"

"Well she's skittish, yeah but not this bad. Only as of pretty recent." Her sentence punctuated by the ring of the morning bell gave the students their last chance to be on time. "I gotta get to class, I'll see ya and... thanks for the sandwich."

JC looked down at his newfound friend and smiled lightly. "Yeah, no problem Nat." That's when he saw it, the evidence of last night's horrific trauma plain on the nape of her neck. Due to their height differences, having a near straight downward angle was enough to see under her shirt collar and catch a glimpse of the markings she tried so desperately to keep away from prying eyes. Watching her walk off to his class, he proceeded to his own with his thoughts solely focusing on whatever could have made that mark.

Entering the room, taking attendance and beginning the lesson, JC looked over to Sayori's desk and was surprised to not see her today. Normally she'd be rather late but not so far as to miss the morning headcount. Looking around the room and then to the door, he waited and waited by Sayori never came.

' _Hm... must be sick._ '

Classes proceeded regularly as time went on at what felt like a snail's pace. The subjects had no interest to him but he knew they were necessary so he attempted to feign interest in hopes of tricking himself into somewhat enjoying the area of study but could never quite "convince" himself. Finally the bell rang and allowed the students their release as eagerly awaited for but JC still had a club to attend and that's where he'll be for the next hour. ' _At least the girls are cute...'_ was his own reasoning for tolerating it when the times where he wanted nothing more that to go home came around. Nevertheless, he found himself at the clubroom door once again and slid it open.

"Welcome back, JC." If maturity has a voice it would be Monika. Her elegant speech matched only by Yuri if she could hold herself together confidently in a conversation. Speaking of Yuri, she was nowhere to be seen along with Natsuki. JC wondered where could they have gone to before returning the greeting.

"Hey, Monika. I know Sayori isn't here today but where are the others?"

"It seems they're most likely running a tad late. I guess it'll just be you and me for a little while~." That smile resurfaced as she leant forward, hands clasped around her lower back.

"Yeah, guess it will be." His reception must not be that good as he clearly wasn't picking up the signals she was putting out. A quiet sigh and a small shake of her head was all Monika could do as she was brushed off. ' _What am I going to do with him..?'_

Setting himself down at his usual desk, JC took a small book from his bag and began to read before feeling something a little off. He tried his best to ignore it but it had started to wear on his psyche as he was forced to look up from his book. His immediate sight was Monika straight across from him yet sitting in a spun around desk chair with her legs crossed, reading a book of her own. His eyes trailed back down to the printed word in his hands and began reading once more until the subtle movement on the edge of his vision pulled his eyes right back up at attention. The mere flipping of a page would normally not call his focus but solely because it was the one person here that had given him this feeling of an unknown danger, he felt as though he couldn't take his eyes off of her. He never _did_ mind keeping an eye on her though as she was quite easy on the eyes. However, before he could attempt to force himself back down to the pages, the movement of Monika's leg removing itself from over the other grabbed him and ordered his attention to stay. The raising of her opposite leg was slow and almost seemed deliberate as the careful movements gave a flash of a pure white before her the leg crossed over.

"It's not polite to stare."

Without moving his head, JC's eyes flicked down to his book. "Don't know what you're talking about..."

He could see her shuffling but kept his eyes glued to the pages, not wanting to face her for his accidental transgression. Monika would not accept this as her finger landed between the pages of his book, lightly pushing it onto the desk. Slate blue met emerald green as they made contact. Her confident smile visible as always as her head rested on her hand. JC felt a twinge of panic as the memory of yesterday afternoon's dream came back, punching through the walls of his subconscious. His pulse shot up as his face even lightly flushed while those damned eyes were fighting his own.

"Is there something wrong, JC?" Monika leaned forward, further over his desk as he himself began moving back just as slow as she did.

"N-No it's nothing..."

"Are you sure? You seem a little flustered." The smile only grew deeper as she now had him off balance. Monika realized that there wasn't must that could throw JC off like this, but now that a chink in the armor was discovered, she couldn't help but exploit it. Putting both elbows together whilst leaning on the his desk, Monika pushed her arms together a bit more to accentuate her already bountiful bosom. The raging hormones clashed against his logic and reason for control of the body. JC tried his best not to shift his stare any lower, for fear of walking straight into her clutches. Monika knew she had him pinned and her look became much more lascivious.

" _You know..._ I actually don't have much to do this weekend so if you'd like, you co-"

The sounds of a heated argument came into earshot, even through the walls as voices approached the clubroom door. Monika's apparent irritation wouldn't be noticed as JC turned his attention to the door. His prayers of the other remaining members appearing had been answered as the bickering duo came crashing through the door with debate still flowing.

"-even once tell me that Parfait Girls isn't a good example of literature!"

"I say so because it isn't! It completely lacks any sort of depth or provocation of thought! These characters may as well be cardboard cutouts with how two-dimensional they are."

"Don't You dare insult those girls! Just because they're not super edgy, fake deep wannabe's doesn't make them two-dimensional!"

Without even missing a beat, purple and pink found their way to their desks, took their seats and continued at each other. Back and forth the nonsense went as Monika rose from her seat, a disgruntled and disappointed look in prime view.

"Excuse me, JC. It appears need to step in..."

Monika walked over, getting between the two and working her magic to quell the loud spat between the girls. JC only sighed and leaned back in his chair, thankful that _something_ got her away from him. After the room quieted and the dust had settled, Monika stood proudly over her members and cleared her throat.

"Alright everyone, today we will be sharing our poems!"

JC froze at the mention of the poems as immediately after the conversation with Yuri this morning had ended, he immediately pushed it out of his mind to focus on something else. Now it looked like he had unknowingly selected his second option and will now just have to deal with the consequences.

"Is there something wrong, JC? You look a little stressed."

Yuri couldn't see his face as she sat a couple rows behind him but she knew he hadn't written anything before class. She was actually quite disappointed in what she saw as a lack of interest or even worse, taking the club at all seriously.

"Uh, Monika, I was never told that I had to write one."

"What are you talking about? I made the announcement on Tuesday th-" her eyes widened at the realization that he'd still just transferred yesterday. JC had completely missed her announcement. "...oh silly me, ehehe..." Monika quickly shies away at her blatant mistake and looked nervously around at the stares from the remaining two members.

"W-Well, seeing as our newest was not informed properly and we are currently missing another, I will postpone this sharing session until Monday. Hopefully Sayori will be back by then." Spinning on a heel and twirling her skirt a bit, she want back and sheepishly sat at her desk, trying to keep a low profile.

As everyone went to do their own thing, the burning feeling of something wrong with Natsuki kept forcing its way back to center stage in JC's mind. His experience tells him the mark he saw was _clearly_ a hickey, but he didn't think she was the type to be interested in sexual activity. Hell, did she even have a boyfriend? Looking to Monika, he saw she was neck deep in work for different classes and could put together that she was too busy to be answering questions as of now. The only other options were direct confrontation or asking Yuri. Seeing as one was a bit of a last resort, JC sighed as he stood and casually approached the girl buried in her book. Taking a seat in the desk to her right, he leaned back in the chair and tried to catch her attention.

"Hey, Yuri..." his voice was low to keep prying ears out of his business, though it seemed to have been a bit too low. Reaching out and gently tapping her shoulder, she lightly jumped as those wide purple eyes met his own.

"J-JC! I-Is there something I can help you with...?"

Putting a finger to his lips, he looked to the others to make sure they were still held captive by their own activities before continuing.

"I need to ask you something. How well do you know Natsuki?"

"How well do I- W-What for?"

"Its just a feeling. Does she have a boyfriend?"

Those words sent her heart on a race to Hell as she almost got a little dizzy. "B-B-Boyfriend?! I-I...W-Why do you want to know?"

"Like I said... Just a feeling."

She tore her gaze away and focused her will to keeping this rush of anxiety and emotion from surfacing. Her hands were trembling ever so sightly as it felt like her throat was closing up. "N-No, she doesn't have a... b-boyfriend."

"Alright. Thanks for your help Y- Wait, are you okay?" Rather observant he was, for being your average boy.

"I-I'm fine... Please, don't worry about me."

"I Uh... Alright then." Awkwardly walking back to his desk, he checked his phone.

' _No shit, time to head out._ '

Picking up his belongings and packing up for the day, the others took notice and started to do the same. Exiting the room, JC leaned against the wall opposite the door and waited for his opportunity.

The girls piled out one by one with books and bags. The group all said their goodbyes as they went their separate ways. But before Natsuki could get away, JC put a hand on her head seeing as he'd have to lean down to touch her shoulder.

"Hey, Nat... You want a ride home?"

She looked up grumpily from being reminded yet again how short she was. "I can walk by...screw it. Sure, you can take me home."

Getting their things from their lockers and proceeding out to the parking lot, they entered the vehicle as the engine start-up drew some attention from the crowd. Shifting into gear, the car sprang out from it's little resting spot and out into the street. After getting comfortable and relaxing to the beat of the motor running, Natsuki felt this long forgotten feeling of warmth in her chest. She felt relaxed, at home... _safe_ even. Her fingertips traced the lining of the leather seats along with the armrest on the inside of the door as her eyes looked through the glass into the gloomy sky. Rain or shine, she felt as though she could ride here for eternity as long as she was here and protected. But that feeling was fleeting as Natsuki remembered exactly where she was heading. Trying to get her mind off of the thought of walking straight back into the Lion's Den, Natsuki cleared her throat.

"S-So...what kind of car is this? I've never seen one before."

"Old seventies muscle car. Used to be popular until speed and a flat body style became the biggest thing in the eighties."

"Do you know what this car is called?"

"Like the model? Nineteen seventy, Chevelle SS, four-fifty-four."

Natsuki perked up with a twisted look of confusion. Obviously she knew absolutely none of what he just said, especially the numbers. She was reluctant to ask but Natsuki would grit her teeth and swallow her pride. "I...don't know what that means."

A small smile spread across JC's lips as he heard her little confession. "Not a lot of people do. Nineteen seventy means it was made that year and its known as a Chevelle SS, the SS means 'Super Sport'. The number just means it's a big and powerful engine."

"Oh..." Thus, she learned something she would never forget. She may not have a total grasp of the car and it's terminology and inner workings like it's driver, but she knew enough to be satisfied.

"Let me ask _you_ a question. Do you have a boyfriend?" The utterance of the sentence caught Natsuki by surprise with it's unusual confidence, like it was nothing to ask such a thing.

"What?! Of course not!" Her little rosy cheeks flared up with color as she regained her huffy composure. Her heart skipped a beat in anticipation of his next question. Her mind raced with all possibilities but the roads only came back to one. ' _Would you like me to be?'_ Truth be told, it would have been better to say that.

"Really, then who gave you that mark on your neck? You don't seem like the kinda girl to be fuck buddies with someone."

The cute red tone in her face instantly left as the embarrassment turned to fear. She had been found out. Her lips parted to say something as her eyes remained laser-focused on the passenger panel of the dash. No words could be formed as her light trembling started to set in.

"...i-it's...noth..." the tiny voice was barely audible over the engine.

"Huh?"

She shook her head and hung it low as Natsuki couldn't bear to face him. The shame and embarrassment was way too much and she didn't even know if she would be able to show up on Monday or ever again.

"Nat, if you got a pro-"

" _IT'S NOTHING!"_ The shrill shriek of her reply after the sudden clamming up told him all he needed to know.

"...alright. How much further?"

"...not much."

Pulling up a couple houses down at her request, JC said his goodbyes and watched her walk down the street to her front door. As she approached, said door flung open and a man appeared with an angry air about him. He couldn't quite make out what the yelling was, but watching Natsuki cower like that put the pieces together for him.

Heart racing as her hand lurched forward toward the door handle, Natsuki didn't hear the TV this time but still inhibited by her fears, found herself struggling to enter her home. Her heart almost stopped completely when the knob turned itself and the door swung right open.

"Back so soon? Good, I was just startin' ta feel it..."

"D-Dad please, N-Not tod-"

" _Shut up!_ " Her father grabbed her by the collar and yoked her right up to his face. "When I wanna hear you I'll fuckin' say so!" He smelt of beer as per usual. His eyes were unfocused and glossy as he stared her down. Most frightening was the look of hunger they held. "Now get in here..." Tight grip remaining on her uniform, Natsuki was pulled into the house as the door slammed behind them.

"Now be a good girl. You know what I like..."

Her quaking limbs found their way to her backpack straps and brushed them from her shoulders. Next were the buttons on her coat. One by one they were undone as the garment piled itself on the floor beside her bag. Her father approached with that sadistic, toothy grin, causing her to take a couple steps back.

"Aww, running away already? Come on now... _finish it_..."

Unbuttoning her blazer and tossing it aside left her with the white undershirt and lacy tie. Shaking fingers took ahold of an end and started to pull before what sounded like a loud creak hung in the air. The two looked around a bit before he 'focused' his gaze back on her.

"Quit teasin' and just pull it already... Not gettin' any fuckin' younger."

Doing as ordered to prevent further anger, Natsuki pulled the lace and dropped her tie and was suddenly pounced on by the drunken man. She cried out as she was taken into the kitchen and held up against a wall. His clumsy and inebriated fingers went to work undoing the blouse buttons as the tears started flowing. Now it was only seconds before she would have to bear with another session of pain and abuse. Her watered vision turned up to look at the cause of her anguish. The hatred of this man was burned ever deeper into her soul as he slipped open her blouse and grinned wider.

Before any more damage could be done, large hand smacked right onto the man's throat, clenching around it. He tried to yelp in surprise but the sound was warbled and choked out. Natsuki sank to the floor in fear as her eyes widened, arms shooting across her chest as she tried to cover up. She bore witness to a large hooded figure drag her drunken father across the kitchen by his neck and choke slam him into the kitchen table with enough force to break it. A warbled scream of pain was heard as the supports broke, sending him straight into the floor. The figure stood and looked over this mess for a minute before the hood of his black leather jacket fell, revealing long, loose white hair.


End file.
